DeadWorld

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/19957667

For decades, California police chiefs and sheriffs have lamented how difficult it is to fire officers and deputies who act with dishonesty or brutality, blaming powerful labor unions and robust employment protections.

What law enforcement leaders have not revealed, and what has remained a secret until now, is how they have repeatedly turned to an under-the-radar method of getting rid of problem officers — one that not only allows the officers to avoid accountability but, often, to quietly move on to other jobs where they are asked to protect the public.

For years, dozens of California police agencies have executed “clean-record agreements,” clandestine legal settlements that promise to hide the wrongdoing of an officer in exchange for the officer’s guarantee to leave an agency without a fight, an investigation by the San Francisco Chronicle and UC Berkeley’s Investigative Reporting Program found.

cross-posted from: https://discuss.tchncs.de/post/22235454

Observations with the LOFAR (Low Frequency Array) radio telescope last year showed that first generation Starlink satellites emit unintended radio waves that can hinder astronomical observations. New observations with the LOFAR radio telescope, the biggest radio telescope on Earth observing at low frequencies, have shown that the second generation ’V2-mini’ Starlink satellites emit up to 32 times brighter unintended radio waves than satellites from the previous generation, potentially blinding radio telescopes and crippling vital research of the Universe.

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/13189597

Hypocrisy, thy name is liberal democracy?

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/19484886

Artists4Ceasefire, the industry collective that has been pushing for an end to the current war in Gaza (and whose pin badges were worn by various attendees at this year’s Oscars ceremony), is spearheading a new initiative calling for a halt to illegal arms sales to Israel.

Through a partnership with artist Shepard Fairey and several humanitarian organizations — including Oxfam America, ActionAid USA and War Child Alliance/Children in Conflict — the group has launched a call to action bearing the message “Ceasefire Now, Stop Weapons, Save Lives” that urges the halt to what it says are “weapons transfers that violate U.S. and international law.” Such laws state it is illegal to supply or use weapons to commit “grave human rights violations,” including striking schools or hospitals, restricting humanitarian aid, and killing children.